Hundreds of SVB India employees “open to work” amid uncertainty

The recent collapse of US-based Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) has left several employees, including ones working in India offices, in the lurch. 

In the past 24 hours, hundreds of India-based employees of the failed bank have taken to social networking platforms like LinkedIn, putting out posts as they actively seek new roles, while others have submitted applications to recruiting firms. 

“I joined the bank with great eagerness to learn and grow in the dynamic world of banking. However, my time at the bank was abruptly cut short when it was shut down in just 48 hours,” wrote a product manager working out of SVB's Bengaluru office as he searches for a new job with the 'open to work' tagline.

"The experience was surreal and disorienting as it was a difficult and stressful time for all of us. We had very little time to come to terms with what was happening." 

YourStory has reached out to SVB India to ascertain the situation, the number of employees working in India, and the company's way forward. 

As per estimates, SVB has more than 800 employees currently working in hybrid mode in Bengaluru. 

While it is yet to be ascertained which departments and teams have been affected, the majority of the job seekers are from the product and tech areas. 

Another software engineer wrote, “Hi All, I am sure you have heard about the fatal news of #SVB. It's been a learnful and instructive journey throughout the tenure. However, now I am looking for new opportunities (sic).”  

Sarbojit Mallick, CBO and Co-founder at HRtech platform Instahyre, told YourStory that they have received about 150-200 applications from SVB employees seeking new roles in the last 12 hours.  

“Most of the applications have come in from tech and product departments, including software engineers, developers, architects, system analysts, CRM/API consultants, product development, and so on. These are from both junior- and senior-level employees,” he said. 

Another executive from a recruitment firm said a large pool of SVB job seekers has entered the market. The firm has received 50-60 profiles, as of now, mostly from data analysts, and a few from financial associates.

Meanwhile, Premil Dennison, Managing Director and Country Head, SVB India applauded the efforts of the team operating in India on LinkedIn and emphasised the importance of reaching out. 

“This is not just a banking crisis; it's immensely personal to all of us. Take care of yourselves and your families first. However, the chips may fall, do know that your knowledge and skill set is unique, deep and highly sought after. You have my unwavering support during this tough time. I'm here to talk, chat or email if you just want someone to listen,” he wrote.

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SVB, the 16th largest bank in the United States, was closed on March 10 by the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation which later appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) as its receiver.

The bank had 8,528 employees as of December 2022, CNBC reported.

In order to protect insured depositors, the FDIC created the Deposit Insurance National Bank of Santa Clara (DINB), and transferred all deposits—both insured and uninsured—of the failed SVB to the newly created ‘bridge bank’, which will be operated by the US agency. Starting March 13, startups were allowed to withdraw their money that was stuck in their SVB accounts, as US government allowed businesses to have full access to their deposits.

(This story was updated to correct the spelling of Instahyre.)